Hello Readers!
This summer was a kite that pulled loose from my grip. Midsummer blew away on a swift wind with sunny day plans, planning for fall, and numerous young people rotating around the pool and my dinner table. This week, I’m grasping at the string of these last few days before Ethan and Sophie move out, trying to tie them down.
I’ve been thinking a lot about creativity over the past few months, and how hard it is to cultivate when anxiety/grief/pain spill into our days OR when the house and calendar are full of good things. Both have been the case for me, and I’ve struggled to maintain a practice of creative cultivation.
It inspired me to write about this struggle, and my latest article “How to Create Like Your Creator” is the result. I wrote it for those of us who either struggle to believe we’re creative or who are trying to lure the wild animal of our creativity out of hiding. The article is filled with practices to help get you started, and I hope it meets you where you are today.
In the spirit of this idea, let’s get creative!
I share a simple prompt seasonally on Instagram to get our creativity flowing, and I thought I’d share it here too.
A Short Reflective Practice:
Every season, we share a snapshot of our lives in exactly six words. It’s an exercise in brevity, reflection, and paying attention.
What’s your summer story in a six-word memoir?
Here’s mine:
God’s love--a river. Jump in.
Share your six-word memoir with me in the comments below!
But wait, there’s more :)
Besides reducing summer to six words, writing and editing a few articles, and baking lots of sourdough bread, I’ve been creative in new ways I hope will help you.
This summer, I created a new digital guide called A Writer’s Rule of Life, and it’s available now in the Writer’s Work Shoppe!
If you’re a writer this is for you.
If you love a writer, would you forward this to them or consider gifting it to your writerly loved one?
If you’re not a writer, but you work in a creative field, this guide still translates. Just substitute “artist” “musician” “maker” etc. for the word writer, and it becomes a guide for you too!
A Writer’s Rule of Life helps you answers these two questions:
Who do you want to be as a writer?
How do you want to live as a writer?
A writer’s rule of life focuses on crafting guiding principles for one’s creative life. Many writers struggle to identify their purpose and plan their writing practice. A writer’s rule of life helps writers to partner with God in crafting a creative practice and cultivating regular rhythms that lead to their flourishing.
This resource will guide you through a path of 3 P’s: Purpose, Planning, and Practice, to create an individual and intentional plan for your writing life
Inside this digital download, you will find everything you need to create your own Writer’s Rule of Life.
The Writer’s Rule of Life includes:
-A complete guide to help you create a personal Writer’s Rule of Life
-Journal prompts for reflection
-Reading recommendations
-30 breath prayers for writers
Get A Writer’s Rule of Life here!
Thanks so much for supporting my work as you seek to live a more attentive life.
I hope the rest of this summer gives you bountiful gifts to hold and creative joys to explore.